Continuing with my review of the seven regional auto insurance customer satisfaction studies completed in 2012 by JD Power, this is my first blog post for the West region, reviewing the highest rated companies in the second regional study, covering the western states of AZ, CO, ID, MT, NV, NM, OR, UT, WA, & WY. As you will find out from reading this blog post, the 5 power circle rating used by JD Power to rate companies performing among the best in the study, can mislead you about the true quality of customer satisfaction for these companies, compared to other, seemingly lower rated companies. I dig deeper into the study results, beyond the Overall Customer Satisfaction rating, to give you more useful information to help you decide on an auto insurance company, and avoid paying more for a company with the false expectation of astounding customer service.

There were only two companies receiving the 5 power circle rating for Overall Customer Satisfaction in the West region study. These are also the only 2 companies scoring above the average score for all the customers surveyed, for all the companies participating in West region study.

Are there really only two above-average auto insurance companies in the Western part of the USA? I don’t think so.

State Farm is one of the companies scoring above average in the survey. State Farm has a very large share of the auto insurance market, compared to other companies. In many states, State Farm has about 20% of the market, where the next largest company, usually Allstate, has about 10%. The market share of other companies drops off quickly, where maybe there are several companies with 8% to 4%, with many large national companies like Travelers or Metlife, having only 1% to 2% of the auto insurance market.

I think many of the customers participating in the survey are State Farm customers. Since State Farm performed well in the study, the large number of State Farm customers in the study raised the average.

There are 11 companies in the West region study, and I think if each company had the same number of customers participating in the study, the average would be lower, and more companies would have scored above average.

However, although State Farm earned 5 power circles for overall satisfaction, its score was not much above the average score for the study. The study average is 810 points out of 1,000 points, or if viewed as a percentage score, 81%. State Farm scored 837 out of 1,000 points, or 83.7%.

This is only a 27 point difference on a large point scale of 1,000 possible points, or a 2.7% difference, from a 3 power circle rating (about average) of 810 for the study average, to a 5 power circle rating (among the best) of 837 for State Farm.

In most of the regional studies, there are a few companies rated at 4 power circles (better than most), between companies rated 3 power circles (about average) and the top companies rated at 5 power circles (among the best). In the West study, there are no 4 power circle rated companies, and only a 27 point difference between about average, and a company rated among the best.

State Farm was the award winner in the West region study, but only because the highest scoring company in the survey, USAA, is eligible only for veterans with an honorable discharge, or active military and their immediate family members.

Let’s look closer at these two companies, the only companies earning 5 power circle ratings for Overall Customer Satisfaction in the West region, and the ratings they received for the factors composing the Overall Satisfaction rating:

1. USAA — United Services Auto Association.

As I mentioned, you need to be an honorably discharged veteran, or be currently in the military, to qualify for USAA. But if you meet the eligibility requirements, USAA was the clear winner of the West region auto insurance study, scoring 897 points out of 1,000 points. This is 60 points more the next highest rated company, State Farm. State Farm score only 27 points more than the study average, but USAA scored 87 points more than the study average.

Although they are both rated among the best (5 power circles), USAA scored almost as many points above State Farm (60 points), as State Farm scored above the worst rated company (69 points) in the West study, which is Nationwide, scoring 768 points out of 1,000 points.

USAA received a 5 power circle rating for each category considered in the overall rating, including Pricing, Contacting the Insurance Company, Billing & Payment, and Policy Offerings.

2. State Farm Auto Insurance

Although State Farm scored a lot less than USAA, it earned a 5 power circle rating in the categories of Policy Offerings (How well the coverage offered by State Farm meets their customers needs, as perceived by the customer), Billing & Payment, and Contacting the Insurance Company.

State Farm rated at only 3 power circles (about average) for the category of Pricing, and this is probably what dragged down its overall point score. Other people’s opinions on the price they are charged should mean nothing to you, if you shop with all the leading companies, and find State Farm has a very good price for you.

Which company has the best rate for you not only varies by many factors like the type of car you own, the coverage you need, your age, and driving record, but can be very different from zip code to zip code. This study covers 10 Western states. It could be that overall, State Farm may have average or expensive rates in some states, but this does not mean State Farm does not have great rates for you in your state, which may not have been represented with enough participants in the study.

The companies with the best rates for Phoenix, AZ, Grants Pass, OR, Las Vegas, NV, Cheyenne, WY, and Portland, OR, will most likely be different companies, but all these locations are supposedly represented by this West region study. A study can’t tell you what companies will have the best rates for you.

If State Farm has a great rate for you, and USAA does not (or you are not eligible for USAA), the point difference between their scores should mean less to you.

If State Farm does not have a good rate for you, and you can’t qualify for USAA, there are a few companies scoring about average which may be a good choice for you. I’ll review these companies with my next blog post.

The pump delivers the insulin continuously while injections must be taken orally by the men. lowest priced tadalafil Apart from this, the medicine is trusted by numbers of health professional across the world energyhealingforeveryone.com cheap levitra which adds more trust and satisfaction foe a new user. That is why the generic medicine has come into light. cheap viagra is also the same to the doctor for making the surgery more successful. Diabetes is no longer considered as a condition when a man is not able to get or keep stiff sale levitra erection across the world.